Five UNH students arrested at World Series celebration

Five University of New Hampshire students, including one from Bow, have been arrested and charged with disorderly conduct after several thousand people blocked Durham’s Main Street to celebrate the Red Sox win in the World Series.

“Several officers sustained minor cuts and several vehicles parked on Main Street received minor damage,” the university said in a statement yesterday morning.

Approximately 1,000 people gathered downtown on Main Street to celebrate after the win Wednesday night, the police said. That crowd quickly grew to about 3,000. After the crowd had been cheering, lighting fireworks and spraying liquids for about 20 minutes, the police said they verbally requested multiple times that the crowd leave so the street could reopen.

“As police started to approach, people in the crowd began throwing bottles and cans at the officers, and at that time pepper spray and pepper balls were used to move the crowd,” the statement read.

Arrested were: Michael J. McGillicuddy, 20, of Rockport, Mass.; Marisa A. Hardy, 21, of Nashua; Evan R. Orlando, 22, of Mansfield, Mass.; Justin Pimentel, 18, of Pelham; and Robert Lougee, 18, of Bow. They were each charged with one Class A misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct and are scheduled to appear in Dover’s district court Dec. 5.

The university warned students before the game that any student arrested during a time where there was a crowd gathered would be suspended on an interim basis and be subject to the court and UNH conduct systems, according to the statement.

Disturbances were also reported on two other campuses in the state, according to the Associated Press.

At Keene State College, the police also used pepper spray after students flipped over a vehicle and threw rocks, glass bottles and ice. No one was arrested. At Plymouth State University, students said small fires were set on campus.

Just when did it become mandatory for celebrations to include throwing rocks, bottles, damaging or overturning cars. Perhaps we should also be redefining celebrating as to include rioting. Perhaps in college towns the offenders should be sent home to mommy and daddy to explain just why their tuition was forfeited when mandatory expulsions become the norm. Or are we to believe that this is just good natured acceptable behavior.